Pope Leo XIV tells newly ordained 24-year-old priest to ‘never lose your joy'
Twenty-four-year-old Father Miguel Tovar of the Diocese of Cartagena, Spain. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Diocese of Cartagena
By Walter Sánchez Silva
Fr Miguel Tovar is 24 years old and one of the youngest priests in Spain. After his ordination on July 5 in the Diocese of Cartagena, he and his parents visited Rome and met Pope Leo XIV, who encouraged him to never lose 'the joy of the priesthood.'
'What a great gift from the Lord, one month after my priestly ordination, to be able to greet the pope. The Holy Father encouraged me to be faithful and not to lose the joy of the priesthood in prayer,' Tovar wrote on Aug. 7 on X.
Tovar said that after telling the pope he had been ordained very recently, Pope Leo XIV told him: 'Be faithful. Many priests lose their joy. Never lose the joy of the priesthood, which you will always find through prayer.'
Upon learning that Tovar's parents had accompanied him to Rome, Leo XIV replied: 'Are they [over] there? Tell them to come!'
Tovar wrote that the pope 'congratulated them for giving their 24-year-old son to the Church.'
The pontiff also said that he is familiar with Murcia, the region in which Tovar lives, and that he is praying for the young man from Murcia who was recently hospitalized in Rome.
He then blessed the priest and his parents as well as the stole conferred at Tovar's diaconal ordination.
Tovar's journey to the priesthood
In an interview published days before his ordination, Tovar said: 'When the Lord calls you, the fear can rise up that God is going to take everything away from you. But it's quite the opposite. Over these years, I've seen that when you give your life to God, he gives you everything.'
Born in Torrealta, a small town in Murcia, Tovar grew up in a happy, Christian home with his parents, twin brother, and older sister.
In the interview, the priest shared that he felt God's calling at age 13, but it wasn't until he was 18, in 2019, that he finally entered the St. Fulgentius Major Seminary.
Tovar chose 'His mercy endures forever' as his priestly motto.--CNA
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